It’s always good to have a doctor. But if you’re looking for something more than just prescriptions and surgery, complementary medicine might be the way to go.

Complementary healthcare is an approach that respects both mainstream medicine and alternative methods. It means that when it comes to your health care, you can decide what’s best for you, whether it’s conventional or so-called unconventional treatment.

Most people don’t know much about this approach because doctors are apparently all-knowing experts who can do no wrong. But, as much as many know, they do also have their own ideas and biases.

For example, therapeutic CBD products and supplements have been unavailable and even illegal for years because of prejudices and laws against the Cannabis sativa plant. So even though some of the treatments involved in alternative healthcare may sound strange at first, many patients swear by them and with good reason.

In this article, we’ll look at some of these methods and arm you with the knowledge to make better decisions regarding your health care.

Complementary and Alternative Health: What Are the Differences?

First, let’s discuss some terminology. Alternative medicine can be considered by some to be a complete medical system on its own. Still, it really is a web of intersecting beliefs and practices from cultures around the world. Alternative therapies are not part of mainstream medicine, but they’re used to treat the same conditions with more conventional treatments.

And while alternative medicine is associated with many mind-body practices like yoga and meditation, it also includes vitamins and supplements, traditional Chinese medicine, herbal remedies, acupuncture and more.

The idea of a complementary healthcare approach involves bridging or integrating both conventional and alternative therapies. It focuses on preventing illness, addressing the whole person — not just an individual symptom — and treating the cause of a problem rather than its symptoms. Complementary medicine also considers each patient’s unique biological, psychological, social, spiritual and environmental factors to help them get well.

Approaches that fit under the complementary are considered complementary because they add to the other therapies a doctor may prescribe.

How Do Mainstream Doctors View Complementary Medicine?

As you can imagine, not all doctors embrace complementary medicine. Many think that if it’s not in textbooks or taught at medical schools, it must be a bunch of nonsense. However, while the number of people who go to alternative therapists is still relatively small, some evidence suggests that more and more mainstream medical practitioners are open to the idea.

Why You Shouldn’t Dismiss Alternative Medicine So Easily

Alternative therapists are careful not to assert that conventional treatments don’t work or that alternative medicine is the only thing you need for good health. Instead, they would suggest working with your doctor to develop a plan suited to your particular needs.

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Moreover, they don’t claim to have all the answers about what therapies help treat specific conditions. Instead, they often refer patients to their primary care physicians for that. In this way, they are actually the ones practicing complementary medical approaches.

What You Can Gain from a Complementary Approach to Healthcare

First and foremost, you’ll be in charge of your own health care. If you’re interested in exploring and incorporating alternative therapies into your treatment plan, keep researching and asking questions until the doctor is on the same page as you.

A complementary approach also means finding new ways to prevent illness and treat problems, so you can live your life to the fullest. And if you don’t have a conventional doctor or healthcare provider? There are still lots of options out there.

These days, some doctors actually recommend that patients see an alternative health practitioner as well. Doctors who take this path perform the vital task of helping to educate their patients about other ways forward with their health. When various healthcare practitioners work together, the patient is the one who wins with better end-to-end care.

Complementary Health Approaches: Products and Practices

The products and practices you might encounter in complementary health approaches vary widely. We’ll give you a few examples here, so you can understand what to expect. If they sound interesting to you, they’ll serve as a terrific leaping-off point to further explore.

Herbs, Vitamins, Minerals, Probiotics and Extracts: These may be a part of a treatment plan recommended by your alternative health practitioner or used exclusively in place of conventional treatments. For example, when dealing with insomnia, some traditional doctors might prescribe potentially habit-forming sleep aids. But some alternative therapists recommend using hemp-extracted CBD tinctures to promote a sense of relaxation, calm and ease anxiety, which is often why we can’t sleep.

Herbs and extracts are increasingly being studied for their potential to help with weight loss, fight skin problems, reduce stress and boost the immune system.

Mind and Body Practices: Meditation, yoga and deep breathing are just a few of the tools that fall into this category. They’re often used to reduce stress and recenter your mind or body. For example, suppose you have a particularly hectic week ahead. In that case, you might consider using these techniques to relax before starting it, so you’ll be able to handle everything better.

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You may also come into contact with chiropractic and osteopathic manipulation, hypnotherapy, massage therapy and acupuncture. You may benefit from these therapies in various ways, and they may even increase the effectiveness of other treatments.

Food and Nutrition: Complementary health practitioners emphasize the importance of proper nutrition, so they might recommend a diet plan or suggest certain foods to achieve specific goals.

For example, in some integrative oncology centers, the macrobiotic diet is recommended for patients with cancer. It’s a predominantly vegetarian, whole-food diet that helps patients feel full while working to keep them strong and create a positive state of mind. This is then thought to boost the immune system and increase the chances of recovery.

Increase Your Health

It’s becoming more apparent that there is a place for both complementary and alternative therapies in healthcare. One of the most important things we can do as patients is create a demand for practitioners to educate themselves about more than pills and surgical sutures.

When combined with a conventional approach, complementary health can increase your chances of healing quickly and entirely while reducing the likelihood of adverse side effects. This is because you are taking a more holistic approach to your body, mind and spirit to care for it and heal it in the many ways it needs.